Lee Jun-ki’s full-scale advance into the Japanese market has been deemed a success.
The actor stars in the Korean-Japanese joint venture film Virgin Snow, which opened in Japan on the 12th. The film, starring Lee and popular Japanese actress Aoi Miyazaki, is a love story set against the beautiful backdrop of Kyoto, Japan.
According to a Japanese entertainment site, Virgin Snow placed 9th at the box office last weekend, setting a record for a Korean film released in Japan. Last year, Hallyu actress Choi Ji-woo’s movie ,Now and Forever, and movie star Jang Dong-gun’s Typhoon opened in Japan, but their opening week box office stats fell short of Virgin Snow’s record.
The actor and his leading lady greeted fans at the movie’s premiere in Tokyo. Reservations for tickets for the movie’s opening day were sold out within 5 minutes and it is reported that online auction sites even sold tickets for almost 10 times their value.
Lee was surprised by more than 700 fans who gathered at Narita International Airport to greet the star when he arrived in Japan.